train chronicles and updates

so for the past week or so ive been catching a train to and from work... and i must say there is never a dull day!

you see although i spent the entirety of my childhood and youthdom on many modes of public transport, the trains being the main mode (we never had a 'family car')...ive gotten so used to the freedom of being in my own car that ive become sort of a 'train geek'. And geek showed her true colours this past week...

so apparently i get train sick... who the hell gets train sick?? you might ask... i do...like a 'just come from the motherland' i found myself longing for some dried prunes to keep the chunder down on my long and tiresome trip home on tuesday afternoon, i arrived home green and pale and dizzy as ever ...

and you know how at home time when you get on the train at townhall or central or any one of the stations further down on the city circle line and there are very limited seats and then you sorta have to barge your way on, shove everyone out of the way for that lone empty seat otherwise you will face a long and tiresome trip standing all the way back? ....well little did i know that the barging was not so neccesary at wynyard station...

so the train arrives, i prepare myself in that sorta of subtle athletes sprint formation ready to barge... i look around at my discerning opponents, there are five i have to beat... the train pulls up, stops...lets a few people off and im off... shoving and pushing past the five people, scramble for a seat, plant my ass down next to a safe-ish looking lady and breathe a sigh of relief...

... and then i look around the carriage with a great sense of satisfaction ... and to my surprise.. the carriage was empty but for the five annoyed people i bumped out of the way!!!

i must say though, my first day back on the trains was rather funny, being dished a dodgy weekly ticket (that was BOUGHT legitimately!) i went to the gates to be let out at my destination... shoved my ticket in and when it came out i pulled it out... only the gates didnt open...

i had some eager beaver behind me who didnt bother waiting for me to pull my ticket out or to notice that the gate was not opening, shove his ticket in.

Needless to say the gates opened with his ticket but alas! i was standing closest the the arms that opened.... so i walked through...obviously i had to walk through before he could fit through .... but after i walked through... the gates closed on him...

i turned around to the funniest sight, the bluddy idiot looked like he couldnt comprehend what had just happened first thing monday morning and i was a good 15+ mitres off before he realised what had happened and started cursing me...

i was going to turn back but obviously if his ticket was valid the guards would let him through....didnt really feel like getting beat up first thing... and besides...someone should really tell him that patience is a virtue...

anyway ... on to other things:

xmas 07

carols by the tree with dannys cousin June from thailand and her friend





work team christmas lunch - relaxing matilda harbour cruise

nyummy seafood buffet, beautiful weather











christmas eve dinner by the harbour - danny left work early to grab us this lovely dinner from the fish markets, ate it on the pier over-looking the pyrmont harbour..









and then we went to check out the christmas lights





on christmas day i awoke bright and early in anticipation of all the presents





we went for yum cha with liem and then came home... and rode my BRAND SPANKIN NEW BICYCLE!!



OKAY..our new bicycles... i made danny get himself one too because i didnt want to go bike riding alone in case i get chased by dogs and stuff... he got rorted though because his wheels are all mongy and his bike makes loud noises haha



and then off to zero and dariths for a lovely xmas day bbq dinner





some crazy hectic boxing day shopping with danny ray and zoran



a catch up dinner on cockle bay wharf with terry up from melbourne



christmas was topped off by a visit to dannys cute cousins







New Years

NYE Harbour Party @ Luna Park











bee & b 08! launch of bee & b's international brand
(danny was bee & b supporter and thuy linh was wearing the same thing on nye in the UK)



fireworks





orlando bloom (look alike)



bumping into thao



and my highlight? SNEAKY SOUND SYSTEM!!!!!!









I asked danny to take a picture of me with sneaky sound system, amidst the excitement, this is what he took:



so yeah...me with sneaky sound system.

A BIG WARM WELCOME TO 2008!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

....i can't say i was sad to see the end of 2007, infact at the stroke of 12am i breathed a sigh of relief whilst gazing at the colourful fireworks on the wooden planked sidewalk of luna park...

at 11.50 i cried my last tears amidst the crowds at harbour party...i'm not sure whether it was the relief from the passing of 2007, the joy of the coming of 2008...or the sheer sadness and isolation that i had felt that night...or a combination of all of the above... kim leang reached out and said some simple words that i would never forget... words that reminded me that 2008 was only moments away...

2007 was a rather tumultous year.... a year of great emotional turmoil for me, although i experienced many highs (asia trip 07), there were also exceptional lows so low that i sometimes felt that i would not make it through the day... it was a year of learning curves, about people, life, relationships and about growing up...

i lost faith in humanity, in human nature... my naivity lost... i no longer thought that all people were innately good and wept at that loss of innocence... i struggled to grasp the innate evil and tried hard to see things in white again, things weren't even blurred in shades of grey.. it was just all darkness...

as much as 2007 was about discovering... 2008 will be about appreciating

appreciating people and things that matter, the sanctity of relationships and above all else... appreciating myself rather than wasting my efforts where it doesnt matter..

it will also be about happiness and moving on... to bigger, brighter and better things ...

A BIG WARM WELCOME TO 2008!